


Prince Bow and Archer Glimmer

by TippenFunkaport



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Character Swap, Best Friends, Bisexual Bow (She-Ra), Bisexual Glimmer (She-Ra), F/M, Feelings Realization, Friends to Lovers, Glimbow Centric, Mutual Pining, Power Swap, Romance, Tumblr: Glimbow Week
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:02:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26386084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TippenFunkaport/pseuds/TippenFunkaport
Summary: ~~ Switch AU where Glimmer and Bow trade places ~~Glimmer is good at a lot of things. Tech, for one. And archery, obviously. Being a hot-head who hits first and doesn’t think things through, if you ask her buddy Adora. But when you’re basically the only one around here who isn’t magic, you always feel like you’ve got something to prove.But one thing she’s not good at is making friends. Or being all prim and proper fancy. Which is why it’s kind of weird that her best friend is the elemental prince of Bright Moon. But she’s known Bow for so long, it’s easy to forget he’s some big deal royal with magic powers when the two of them are busting Horde bots and recruiting for the rebellion.Or at least it was until he asked her to be his date for this Princess Ball thing. Everyone’s being so weird about them going together and it’s not helping her feel less insecure about being the only regular gal on an all magic team. But, it’s fine, he only asked her as a friend so she didn’t get left behind.…right?Posted for the Glimbow Week Prompt: Glimbow Switch
Relationships: Adora & Bow & Glimmer (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Mermista/Sea Hawk (She-Ra)
Comments: 71
Kudos: 69
Collections: Glimbow Week 2020





	1. Princess Prom: Getting Ready

Who even is that? Glimmer exhaled as she looked at her reflection. The contrast between the polished person in the mirror and the utter disaster of her room behind her didn’t help the feeling of being completely out of place.

It’s not like she’d never worn a dress before. Her closet back at The Library in the Whispering Woods was full of hand-me-downs from her sisters she’d wore for this family thing or that, but none of them were even a fraction as fancy as this gown. The material was so rich it was intimidating.

She looked longingly over at her normal white shirt and jeans lying in a pile on the floor next to her bow and arrows. None of it was coming tonight, and it felt so weird not to have the comforting weight of her gear on her back.

She almost jumped when there was a knock on the door.

“Glimmer?”

Bow.

“Hey! Uh, give me a second.” Why had she said that? She was ready and had been for a while. Well, she was dressed, anyway. She wasn’t sure she was ever going to be ready for tonight. But she felt weirdly calmer having Bow here. It was a reminder that this was just an evening out with her friends. A really really fancy intimidating evening completely out of her league.

Oh well, here goes nothing.

She ducked behind her dressing screen.

“I don’t know why you even bother knocking. If I could teleport, I would just appear wherever I wanted and people could deal.” She took a last look at herself. If you could overlook the fact that they’d dressed up a common soldier like a princess, she looked good. “OK, you can come in!”

She heard the familiar sound of Bow teleporting into her room.

“Where are you?” Bow asked from the other side of the screen.

“Back here. If you’re going to force me to wear this ridiculous getup, I at least get to do a dramatic reveal.” She pushed aside the screen with a flourish, her arm raised dramatically. “Tah dah!”

“I’m not forcing—Whoa.” He stared at her, his mouth open and closing wordlessly a few times until he finally grinned. “You look great!”

She wasn’t sure why it delighted her so much that he’d been at least a little awestruck. It was her buddy Bow! The walking ray of sunshine! It wasn’t like he would ever be anything but supportive. But still. She did a twirl, the pearly sheen of the gown sending a small rainbow cascading down the pale purple fabric where it caught the light. She’d done that for herself in the mirror at least half a dozen times since she’d put it on.

OK, maybe this dressing up stuff was a little fun.

“I clean up pretty well, don’t I?” She preened playfully.

“Well, you don’t look bad dirty either. I mean... Normally? Not to say that you’re normally dirty, it’s just...” Bow blushed and laughed. “I’m not making any sense. You just look... great. Now. And... always. That’s all I was trying to say.”

He grinned at her like she was the most delightful person he’d ever met and she couldn’t help but smile back.

The thing about Bow? He sparkled. OK, yes, there was some literal sparkling thing going on when his hair caught the light and there was sometimes a kind of twinkle in his eye when he was excited that was definitely more magic than metaphor. But it was also his entire personality. Her best friend was a wrecking ball of cheerful positivity and the only light that got her out of her darker moods.

Gods, she adored this dork.

“Thank you, your highness.” She curtsied like they’d all three been practicing since the invite came for the All Prince and Princess Ball a few weeks ago.

“Can you never ever bow to me again, please? It’s... weird.” Bow looked thoroughly uncomfortable. “I feel awkward enough.”

“You know, when we’re running around the woods after the Horde, it’s a lot easier to forget that you’re Elemental Prince Bow, sole heir to the Kingdom of Bright Moon. Now, not so much.” She gave his title a pompous voice, and he tugged at his cuff self-consciously.

His suit looked like they made it of the same rich stuff as her dress. It was pale purple, with light blue cording along the front in the shape of a diamond. There was a cape too, translucent blue and very sparkly. His midriff was bare, because it always was, but no judgment there. If she had abs that good, she’d be showing them off all the time too.

The whole look wasn’t that much fancier than she’d seen him wear for court events, apart from the silver circlet he wore nestled around the dark purple curls of his hair. There was a small blue stone in the center, like a miniature Moonstone.

The literal crown she’d never seen him wear before? That really made the whole royalty thing impossible to forget.

He looked… handsome? Which was a word she’d never thought of using for Bow before. This suit may not leave his biceps exposed like his daily wardrobe did, but this look was still doing him a lot of favors. She was, of course, only noticing this in a strictly platonic, best buds kind of way.

Except now she’d been staring at him for way too long and he gave her a smug look so, prince or not, she had to bring him back down a few pegs.

“Nice headgear.” She went over and flicked his circlet. Which was probably, like, high treason or something, but Bow just grinned. And he did that all the time, but this time it gave her a weird feeling in her stomach. Not bad, just... different. She started babbling to cover over... whatever the heck that just was. “Incidentally, trying on dresses with your mom? Easily one of the top three most awkward moments of my entire life.”

“Sorry! I offered to help you with it myself.” He was right. He had offered, and it probably would have been a lot of fun. She and Adora had had a ton of laughs as Bow tried to teach them all the dances and customs they had to know for this ball. But she’d wanted to surprise him and prove she could look like a princess, even if she wasn’t even remotely one at all. And that meant gritting her teeth and letting Queen Angella help her pick out a dress. “But my mom appreciated getting a chance to get to know you and Adora better. She said she liked you.”

“Of course, she liked Adora. Everyone loves She-Ra! But I doubt she’d even know my name if you and I weren’t friends. Everybody else around here has powers or some ancient birthright or something. I’m, like, the only one that’s not magic.”

She sighed. That definitely came out more bitter than she’d intended. It was just so frustrating that Adora and Bow had all these powers and she was just the regular gal, getting her non-magic ass kicked daily. She’d been busting her butt for the rebellion for years, and Queen Angella never made half the fuss she did the second She-Ra walked in. It sucked.

Bow put his hands on her arms. “Glimmer, she meant you. Do you really think my mom could forget how you just showed up all those years ago ready to take on the entire Horde yourself? You’re the youngest commander the rebellion’s ever had, a master archer, a technology expert—”

Glimmer flushed. She moved away and pretended she was fixing her shoes. “Now you’re stretching it. Compared to Entrapta, I’m barely a tinkerer. And you know The Queen and I don’t exactly get along.”

“Hey, even I don’t always get along with my mom.”

That was true. And Bow got along with everybody! But, after all this time, she knew Bow, and knew he’d rather hide his feelings than fight with his mom. And she got it, the whole dead dad thing was fraught, but if he wouldn’t call his mother out, then someone had to or she’d keep getting scared and dragging the rebellion backwards whenever it seemed like they were finally getting somewhere.

When Queen Angella had insisted on coming to her and Adora’s fitting with the Bright Moon tailors, Glimmer had nearly bailed on the whole thing. But while her majesty’s taste definitely trended towards much poofier dresses than hers, it hadn’t really been that bad. Maybe she should take her up on that offer of tea sometime, just the two of them.

Or not. Ugh. What was with her today? After all this time, why did she suddenly care what Bow’s mom thought about her?

She’d run out of things to pretend to do with her shoe. “Anyway, at least now we match. Just like you wanted.”

They really did. The shoulders of her dress were the same glittery material as his cape, and the blue braiding at the top of his suit matched the threading spread out in intrinsic curls from the heart cutout over her chest.

“We do!” His eyes twinkled. He’d been trying to drag her with him to royal functions in matching outfits for years. It had taken a once a decade party for the planet for her to finally give in. And she still wasn’t sure this was a good idea. “I like your hair.”

“Now I sparkle too!” She didn’t have a lot of hair—she kept it short so it didn’t impede visibility during a fight—but she’d pinned dozens of tiny pink gems into what she had. She shook her head, knowing the light would send twinkles dancing across her jet black hair. “And if anyone tries to mess with us at this thing, I can use these to jab their eyes out!”

Bow narrowed his eyes. “Glimmer…”

“Calm down. I’m joking!” Mostly. She gave him her most innocent smile.

“I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?” He sighed, but he was smiling. There was that strange feeling again. This whole ball thing was making her so nervous, and she hated it.

She went over and pretended to straighten his collar even though it was fine. There was no one else here but the two of them, but she kept her voice barely above a whisper. “Hey, so, I know I suck at this fancy stuff but… thanks for asking me to be your plus one.”

Bow was looking everywhere but at her, which was impressive since she was standing right in front of him. “No problem. You wouldn’t have been able to go otherwise, right? And the Best Friend Squad sticks together.”

“Right.” She decided that sudden weird twisting pain in her gut was just nerves. “I’ll try not to embarrass you too much.”

“You won’t. It’s impossible.” He was looking at her now intently, and she was suddenly very aware of how close his face was. She realized she was clutching the lapels of his suit kind of tightly and released them, smoothing them back down gently. Was that her heart going so crazy right now she could feel it in her hands?

“So, should we go see if Adora is ready?” She said, mostly to break whatever awkward moment they were having. She moved towards the door, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

“In a minute. You look… amazing, but… I’ll be right back.” He disappeared in a poof of pink sparkles and came back again half a minute later.

“What’s this?” She tentatively reached for the box Bow was holding out. He shrugged and looked away. She flipped the lid and inside was a blue gemstone. One she immediately recognized as the one he always wore just above his heart. “This is yours.”

“Yeah. And I thought maybe... you’d like to wear it tonight?” Bow was looking at her like he was half a second from passing out or throwing up. Or maybe both at the same time. “You don’t have to, I—”

“No. I will. Thank you.” She didn’t own a lot of jewelry herself, so why not? She took the gemstone out of the box and Bow exhaled, so visibly relieved she almost laughed. What a goof. It’s just a necklace! The gem was as tall as her thumb and heavy, but the light caught it and it reflected a million tiny stars. Everything glittered with these people. “Do you think you could—”

“Oh, uh, yeah. Sure. Let me...” He reached around her neck and she felt his fingers brush against the back of her neck as he did the clasp. She had never been so aware of him. They’d been right up against each other a million times on missions, but everything felt charged and different tonight. “There.”

He came around to the front to check his handiwork, the tip of his tongue sticking out like it did when he concentrated. The necklace chain was so thin it was nearly invisible, so it was like the gemstone was hovering just above her chest exactly in the center of the heart cutout of her dress. Neat. Except that now they were both staring at her cleavage, which was super awkward. Bow seemed to realize the same thing and backed up immediately. She caught his eye, and they laughed.

It was a good thing they were such good friends or this might be starting to feel like it was a real date.

“So.” He said, holding out his arm for her. “Princess Prom?”

She grinned and took his arm. “Let’s do it!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is what the hip kids call a character study. I’m not going to be doing the entire story 5 season story, just select parts where I think Bow and Glimmer’s respective personalities would have taken the story and their relationship in a different direction than in canon. 
> 
> I'm fascinated how just switching their roles completely changes their dynamic in ways subtle and huge and I'm eager to play around with that in future installments. 
> 
> You think Glimmer with powers is scary? Oooo, boy, wait until you meet Glimmer with no powers and everything to prove!


	2. Princess Prom: Arriving at The Kingdom of Snows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Best Friend Squad arrives at the Kingdom of Snows for Princess Prom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bet you thought I forgot about this fic! Ha! I never forget about anything! My muse is just capricious and weird!

They appeared in the courtyard of Castle Evernight and it took Glimmer a minute to reorient to the feeling of being solid again. She appreciated the convenience of teleporting but it felt like you were being turned into a bubble bath and back again. Which wasn't exactly unpleasant but didn't feel normal, no matter how many times you did it. 

“Whoa!” Beside her, Adora was gaping at the winter wonderland around them. "This place is huge! And it's even fancier than Bright Moon!”

"No way! It's just ice!" Glimmer shot back. "Everyone has some in their kitchen right now!" 

OK, there was a certain appeal to the intricate patterns sketched across the courtyard walls, sheets of ice as clear as glass. And maybe the path of inlaid jewels that lead up to the massive pillars that marked the entrance of the castle were sort of impressive, but she was feeling very protective of Bright Moon at the moment. After all, it was their home! 

Adora didn’t reply, just smirked and gave her a look. Before she could ask her friend exactly what the hell her problem was, Bow gestured towards the main entrance. 

"Come on. They'll be a greeting line. We'll get that over with then we can explore." He tugged at her hand, which he was apparently still holding, even though he'd let go of Adora's as soon as they'd appeared in the Kingdom of Snows. Which was fine with her because there were A Lot of people here and all of them they were fancy and powerful and intimidating and at least Bow’s hand was warm and familiar. She moved a little closer to his side, glad that she had Adora on the other. 

“Lot of people here. Too many variables.” Adora mumbled under her breath. She kept shaking her head, like she didn’t approve of any of this. Which, considering how hard they’d had to work to even get her to come with them, probably wasn’t far from the truth. 

At least Adora looked great, even though she'd somehow convinced the Bright Moon tailors to basically make her the slightly more formal version of what she wore every day. It was a simple red and gold suit with white pants, but she wore it well. And even though Glimmer had fought pretty hard for a full make-over, she had to admit Bow was right and their friend was way more comfortable this way than she would have been in a dress. Though she was kind of ruining the look by hugging She-Ra's sword to her chest like a murderous teddy bear. 

As they crossed into the massive crowded foyer, Glimmer wondered if maybe she would have been more comfortable in pants too. This place was freezing! And it felt like everyone was staring at her.

It didn't help that Bow seemed to know everyone. They couldn't walk three feet without someone waving to him or stopping him to exchange pleasantries. Did Adora feel as painfully awkward as she did every time it happened? It wasn't only that it was this constant reminder that this was his world and she had no place being here. It was also impossible not to notice that he was charming and friendly and freaking EVERYBODY liked him, would probably like him even if he wasn't some important prince. And she wondered, like she always did when it wasn’t just the two of them, why he even bothered to hang out with her when he could clearly have his pick of a million higher class friends. 

“How does Bow know all these people?” Adora whispered. She narrowed her eyes as Bow finally escaped the older couple he’d been politely nodding at for the last minute, only to be stopped half a step later by two girls with stars on their crowns that looked like they could have been sisters. “How can we be sure they aren’t a threat?” 

“Adora, you have got to relax. They’re just people attending a peaceful event, exactly like us. And he only knows them because his mom’s been dragging him to all sorts of important balls and whatevers since he was a kid. And you know Bow, he’ll make friends with anyone.” Glimmer watched someone vaguely reptilian and draped all over with furs slide up and ooze charm all over her best friend. There was probably a perfectly good reason it was irritating her so much, she just couldn’t think of what it was. “He’s been trying to get me to come to stuff like this since we were kids. If I had, I’d probably know them too!” 

“So why didn’t you?”

Glimmer gestured to everything around them. “Because, look at all this! I don’t belong here.” 

“Aw, totally you should have gone with him. You two might have had fun!” Adora elbowed her in the side and Glimmer glared. It was amazing how they technically had the same face but She-Ra was so capital H HOT but Adora was like the goofy little sister she’d never had. Even though Adora was older than her. And she already had a bunch of sisters. “Little Bow and Glimmer in a whole parade of matching outfits, come on! That would have been adorable!”

Glimmer punched her friend in the bicep, which only made her laugh harder. At least Adora was finally having some fun, even if it was only because she enjoyed giving Glimmer crap. Thing was, not that she’d admit it, but she kinda liked the matching outfits thing. In principle, anyway. And the way Bow described it, it sounded fun enough. The two of them dancing together, goofing around, and then coming home and having ice cream. A whole thing that was just theirs. 

Maybe he was right, and it would have been like that. But more than likely, it would have just been like this. Him being a ray of sunshine as usual while she felt awkward and out of place. 

And she didn’t want to drag him down like that.

* * *

“…and then I was like, ‘At least, that’s the buzz, honey!’” Sweet Bee finished with a flourish and Bow laughed politely even though she’d been making that same joke at every event he’d seen her at for the last ten years. His eyes trailed back to where Glimmer was shaking her head and trying to reason with Adora while she argued with the woman at the weapons check. The sword was on the counter, but Adora was still gripping it tight and refusing to hand it over. 

“Well, it’s been nice catching up with you but I—” He began but Sweet Bee just kept talking. 

Bow exhaled and tried to seem interested in the same old royal gossip. Glimmer was always telling him he was too nice, and he usually countered that there was no such thing but, moments like now, maybe she was right. Not for the first time tonight, he wished she was next to him making all this tedious conversation a little more bearable, but he didn’t want to ruin her evening. All he wanted tonight was for her to have a good time, and then maybe she wouldn’t be so weird about coming to events like this with him in the future. Just because he could do it alone, didn’t mean it wouldn’t be better with his best friend by his side. 

“…so I was like ‘Well, it stung!’ and so of course Peekablue was all, ‘Ugh, I knew you were going to say that!’ and I was like, ‘Ugh, babe, give it a rest! We alllll get it, you’ve got far-sight!’ And everyone else laughed, but he got all pissy and made some comment about how my puns are annoying. Like, what? I am hilarious! And then he stormed off and embarrassed me in front of EVERYONE who is anyone and I’m just, so done, you know?” 

“Mmmhmm.” Bow tried to catch Glimmer’s eye to see if she needed help with the sword situation, but she was in a tug of war with Adora over the hilt and didn’t look this way. 

“Maybe I should just end it tonight, you know? Trade him in for a little upgrade. I mean…” Sweet Bee leaned against Bow’s arm. One hand twirled one of the bright yellow curls that had escaped her elaborate beehive up-do. The jumble of braids and curls surrounded the jeweled antenna sticking up from her tiara and looked so heavy he didn’t understand how she could even keep her head up. She fluttered her wings flirtatiously and wrapped her arm around his. “Queen Bee does have a nice ring to it. You’re here alone as usual, right?” 

Bow took his chance to take a step away from her when a large group needed to get by. He cleared his throat and looked everywhere but at the princess. At these kind of events, sometimes it was hard to tell if people were actually flirting with him or just flirting with the idea of being King or Queen of Bright Moon and he hated it. Not that he was ever actually going to be King since his mom was immortal, but that didn’t seem to deter anyone.

He sighed, flushing. He enjoyed making friends. He even liked small talk. Being outgoing came naturally to him. He just wanted people to like him for himself and not because of magic or because his mom was Queen of the princesses. 

“Uh, no. I’m here with Glimmer.” He glanced over to the weapons check where Adora had surrendered her sword finally but was still shouting instructions at the attendant like it was her firstborn. He couldn’t help but grin a little at the sight of Glimmer trying to bodily drag their friend away. 

“Glimmer? Who’s that? Some sorceress?”

“No. It’s… Glimmer.” He could probably have tacked on her titles, really talked her up as a Master Archer and Tech Master for the Rebellion or whatever but he’d already told Sweet Bee about his best friend a hundred times over the years and shouldn’t have to explain who she was or what made her special. Just Glimmer was impressive enough on her own. “Come on, I’ll introduce you!”

“Oh, you know… Maybe later. I think I saw Corporal Romeo before and I better go say hello. You know how he gets!” Sweet Bee leaned over and kissed Bow’s cheek, smelling sickly sweet. He resisted the urge to wipe it off until she turned away. “It wasp-erfectly wonderful catching up with you, Bow! You look very handsome tonight.”

“Thanks. You look nice too.” He said mechanically, though he couldn’t really look at the pattern of stripes on her yellow and black gown without getting dizzy. “Or, I guess I should say, uh, bee-utiful?”

“Oh, you!” Sweet Bee laughed loud enough that several people turned their way, definitely louder than such a pathetic pun warranted. Then she swatted a hand at him playfully and buzzed herself up above the crowd and out of the room in a flash.

“Bow, please explain to Adora that everything is going to be fine!” Glimmer appeared at his side, looking exasperated. The light reflected off everything in here, and the little pins glistened against her dark hair.

Adora’s brows were knit, and she was gesturing so wildly she almost hit someone. “I don’t like it! It’s just… too many unknowns! No sight lines, poorly marked exits, an entire palace full of strangers, and now we’re completely unarmed! If the Horde—” 

“Adora, Glimmer’s right. No one is going to try anything tonight.” Bow said quickly when the mention of the Horde sent whispers and stares their direction. “Besides…” He summoned a little ball of pink light in his palm for a moment before snuffing it out. “We're not completely unarmed. Now, come on! We’re going to rock this ball!”

With a final glance back at her sword, Adora slumped and joined the line of people filing into the ballroom. Bow followed but Glimmer tugged on his arm. He leaned down so she could whisper in his ear. “Was that Princess Sweet Bee? She seemed… we didn’t interrupt anything, did we?”

“Not at all.” Bow grinned and then added. “You got me out of a sticky situation. I was hoping she would buzz off.”

“Oh gods, I walked right into that, didn’t I?” Glimmer shook her head, but Bow saw the sides of her mouth twitch upwards.

“Yeah, you know, she’s sweet, but she really can’t mind her own beeswax, you know. She’ll just wing it and keep droning on and on and—”

“You absolute dork. I can’t believe I hang out with you.” Glimmer rolled her eyes and pushed his face away from her. Completely unimpressed or the least bit interested in impressing. He laughed, all the tension from before gone in an instant. 

“You don’t like my puns? Wow, Glimmer, truly, that stings!” He said dramatically, and she shoved his chest hard enough to nearly knock him off balance before jogging to catch up with Adora. He followed, feeling perfectly light and happy for the first time all evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have this entire fic outlined but not written which means you will get updates of this very sporadically as I get sections finished. (Usually with a fic I write the whole thing and then post as I edit.) The next section after this will post very shortly after this one but after that is a great big ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ .


	3. Princess Prom: Perfuma

Whoa. 

Bow and Adora started forward but Glimmer hesitated. She took one look at the ballroom and almost turned back down the hallway and all the way out the castle. It was sensory overload. Colors exploded against the blues and whites of the ice, the fresh scent of the massive floral arrangements mingling with the smells of spritzed fragrances and spicy food. 

And people. Races and types she’d never even seen before. Everywhere she looked she was outclassed, the evidence of magic, status, and power everywhere. 

Something brushed against her arm. She turned as a slender woman with wings like a moth swept past her, catching the eyes of half the people in the room with just the sway of her hips. Glimmer watched, feeling flushed, and then took a small step backward, crashing into the small butterfly girl behind her. 

“Sorry!” She moved so her back was against the wall, trying to get her bearings. 

Oh, she really wasn't good at this. Not at people or making friends or doing the small talk thing or trying to navigate all the tricks and traps of conversation. There was a reason she’d had a grand total of one friend for most of her life before Adora had come along. She never should have agreed to come to this, no matter how curious she was to see it. 

She liked machines where things either worked or they didn't. She liked troubleshooting. Or, heck, just regular shooting. Gods, she wished she had her arrows right now. She never realized how much she relied on having her weapons slung on her back as a sign of her competence. In a battle, people could take one look at them and say, OK, she belongs here. She had nothing like that here. 

Someone touched her arm. She jumped, but it was only Bow. He cocked his head a little and smiled at her. She tried to smile back, but it came out more like a grimace. 

"You OK?" He asked, his brows raised. 

"Yeah. Just a little overwhelmed." If it was anyone else, she wouldn’t have admitted it, but it was Bow. They didn’t have secrets between them. 

“I know.” He hooked his arm through hers, which made her feel a little better already. “We just have to get the greeting stuff done with and then we can find somewhere that’s not nearly so crowded.” 

They joined Adora in the long line of people waiting to greet Princess Frosta. The princess looked tiny, dwarfed by the large guards that flanked her and the massive throne of ice that stretched above her head. Bow had insisted on the three of them studying up on all before they came, so Frosta’s age wasn’t a surprise, but the stern expression on her face still took Glimmer aback. No kid should look like that. Supposedly the young princess was incredibly powerful, and they definitely needed all the help they could get if they were ever going to turn the tide in this war but, now that Glimmer looked at the cold expression on that little face, she wasn’t sure how much success they were going to have. 

"Bow!"

Bow suddenly disappeared into a whirl of flowing pink and an overwhelming floral scent. 

"Perfuma! Adora, Glimmer, look who's here!" Bow sounded slightly strangled. 

“The She-Ra!” Perfuma released Bow from her hug attack and looked at the rest of the Best Friend Squad. “And Glimmer.” Her eyes flicked from Bow’s arm linked through hers to the gemstone on her chest. Maybe it was Glimmer’s imagination, but Perfuma seemed to hesitate half a second before widening her smiling and continuing. "It is truly a gift to see you all again. I am so glad we will all have a chance to get to know each other better this evening. I was just going to get myself some refreshments but I hope to find you all again soon.”

“Sounds good!” Bow replied, cheerfully. 

Perfuma touched Bow's and Adora's arms and then gave Glimmer a quick nod before disappearing back into the crowd. Adora immediately turned back to Frosta. Her brows were knit like when they were about to enter a fight and Glimmer wondering if she was listening to the conversations of the people ahead of them for ideas of what to say to Frosta. 

Bow gave Glimmer's arm a gentle squeeze. “See? You have me and everyone from the rebellion. You know plenty of people here!” 

“I guess.” Glimmer did feel a little better seeing another familiar face, but there was still a lot of evening left. She traced the stitching on the bottom of her bodice. "Was it me or did Perfuma seem kind of weird just now?”

“Oh. Well.” He chewed at his lip and then gestured her closer. "She asked me to be her date for this.”

“WHAT?” Glimmer smacked him on the chest. “Bow! You should have told me! I could have just as easily gone as Adora's date.” 

Bow was still worrying at his lip and giving her a weird look. “You’re right. We could have done that.”

Glimmer shook her head. What the hell had he been thinking? Perfuma was an elemental princess and a really powerful one at that! Not to mention that she was key to getting the Princess Alliance back together, which was Bow's whole thing right now. He’d really turned down a whole freaking magic princess just to be a pal and make sure she didn’t get left behind? Guilt twisted in her gut. 

Maybe they should go find her, see if they could explain. She scanned the crowd but didn’t see any sign of the flower princess. What if Perfuma was so insulted Bow rejected her to take a nobody archer that she quit the alliance and then the Horde would win and the whole planet would be destroyed and it was all her fault for being a pathetic non-magic nobody who shouldn’t even be here right now?

“When did she even ask you?” She hugged her free arm around herself, trying to keep out the sharp chill of all this cold. 

“During the battle at Plumeria. She was pretty smooth about it. But…” He hesitated, and she turned to look at him. He was watching her. “Would you rather be here with Adora?”

“I—” She wasn’t sure why the question threw her so far off balance. It should be the same thing, right? Adora… Bow… They were both her best friends. That would be the simplest solution, wouldn’t it? She’d go with Adora and Bow and Perfuma could… but for some reason even thinking about that made her want to throw up. “Wait, a minute. The battle at Plumeria was weeks before you even asked me!”

Bow rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. It was.”

“But…” He’d told Perfuma no because he’d already agreed to go with her as friends and was too nice to say anything. That’s what she’d been assuming. But if Perfuma asked him first…

Bow exhaled, focused on her hand on his arm. “Look, I could have come here with Perfuma. You could have come here with Adora. We could all have hung out together and maybe it would have been a lot of fun. But you’re my best friend and I’ve been wishing you were with me at stuff like this for years and… and I wanted to come with you. Is that OK?” 

He looked at her then, his eyes twinkling and familiar. She stared at him, feeling warm and flattered and also kind of confused. Because Bow was a fantastic friend, the best friend she could imagine, but if they were all just friends hanging out in a big group, what did it really matter who went with who? But he hadn’t asked her if it made sense, only if she was OK with it. She smiled. 

“Yeah. It’s OK.” 

His face lit up with a grin. He put his free hand over hers and suddenly it wasn’t nearly so cold. "Good."

Maybe tonight wouldn’t be so bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Could I have made all of these sections part of one massively long chapter? Probably, but it was too overwhelming from an editing standpoint. Expect the next two segments shortly after this one because it's going to take us several chapters to get through Princess Prom.


	4. Princess Prom: Dancing and Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I write this chapter and the next solely so everyone can actually have a good time at Princess Prom for a change? 
> 
> Yes. Yes, I did. 
> 
> I also swapped Sea Hawk and Mermista in this for literally no reason other than I felt like it!

“OK, I’ll give you the goat lady. Those horns look sharp. But see that dude, by the punch? I could totally kick his ass.” Adora said through a mouthful of food. She’d already put such a dent in the buffet the guards had started looming a bit whenever she went for a refill. Not that it stopped her. She seemed determined to try at least one of everything single thing here. 

“Uh, She-Ra could, sure. But that guy is built like a tank!” Glimmer popped another one of the blue blob things into her mouth. It was sweet and fluffy, and she’d pretty much eaten her body weight in them already. The food here was amazing, all sorts of fancy exotic stuff she had never tasted before and was pretty sure she’d never get to taste again. They’d found some couches up on the balcony that were close enough to the buffet table it was easy to grab more snacks but far enough away from the main floor that half of Etheria wasn’t breathing down their neck. 

It was also an excellent spot for people watching.

“Yeah, but look how tight his skirt is. Limits maneuverability. I could take him.” Adora jabbed her toothpick into a spiky looking hors d'oeuvre. Glimmer had her legs across Adora’s lap, and Adora was using them as a table for the three plates of food she was working on at once. The spiky thing disappeared into Adora’s mouth and then her face turned brick red, tears pooling in the corner of her eyes. She lunged forward, downing her cup of punch in three gulps. “Too hot! Way too hot!”

“You could have spit it out! That would still could as trying it.” Glimmer laughed so hard she almost upset the plates on her legs. Adora shook herself out, rolled her neck and then jabbed her toothpick into another, even spikier one. “Wait, no! That one’s going to be spicy too, dumbass!” 

“You calling me a quitter?” Adora threw this one back and then started laughing as her face turned even redder. Tears streamed fully down her cheeks. Her voice came out in a strained squeak. “Oh, shit, the pain!”

Glimmer handed over her cup of punch. Adora chugged it and used the napkin Glimmer offered to wipe her eyes. 

“Whew.” Adora exhaled. “That one bites back.”

Glimmer just shook her head. “I cannot believe the fate of the universe is in your hands.” 

Adora laughed so hard she snorted. “Where the hell is Bow? He’s missing all the fun.”

Glimmer immediately pointed across the room to where Bow had been standing for the last ten minutes. Not that she’d been tracking him around the room or anything but… OK, fine, she was, but only because she was getting annoyed that he kept getting waylaid by random people. The guy he was talking to now was impossibly good looking, like some kind of statue in a museum, and that was the fourteenth time he’d touched Bow’s arm and if he went in for a fifteenth she was going to go over and… do something she hadn’t decided on yet. 

“Let’s go get some more food. Maybe we’ll find Frosta and I can give it another try.” Adora stacked up her plates—HOW had she finished all that already?—and Glimmer lowered her legs so she could get up. 

“Maybe I should try this time. Bow said she liked me.” In the greeting line, she’d made some silly joke about how it must be boring staring at the top of everyone’s heads while they bowed and Frosta had actually laughed. Poor kid. When she and Bow were still playing tag in the halls of the castle, Frosta was already running an entire kingdom. It made her grateful Queen Angella was always going to be around so Bow would never have all that pressure on his shoulders. 

She waved at Bow, indicating their empty plates, hoping he’d get the hint and follow. But when she glanced back, he was still with Mr. Handsome who was… Yeah, OK, that was fifteen and now she was definitely going over there to—

"Glimmer! Look at my new recorder!" Entrapta appeared out of nowhere, wearing her usual stained overalls. Guess when you're eccentric enough, dress codes didn't apply. Maybe she should try that. "I expanded the memory and added a new voice activation feature here, see?"

"That's awesome!" Glimmer took the device Entrapta had thrust in front of her face. She flipped it to examine the new access port while Entrapta folded her hair... things?… in front of her in anticipation. It really was a sleek bit of construction. She needed to spend more time at Dryl. She felt like she leveled up her skills every time she watched Entrapta work. "So is the mic always live?"

"There's the part I haven't quite worked out yet. Right now it times out after a few hours, which is not optimal. I'm making do with a remote activation but—" Entrapta was settling in for a full lecture when someone else burst into their group. 

"I am HERE!" Sea Hawk slid alongside Adora. The prince of Salineas grinned at them and gave his blue cape a dramatic swoosh. Glimmer could have sworn the shine on his mustache made an actual ping. He’d come off a bit smarmy when they’d first met, but he wasn’t that bad once she got to know him. His hydrokinesis was pretty impressive, at least. 

Adora elbowed her and jerked her head to Sea Hawk’s right. Glimmer followed her gaze and saw... Mermista? She glanced over at Adora, who waggled her eyebrows at her. Glimmer flushed. 

Great. Not this again! You check out a sexy, capable pirate captain ONE TIME and your friends never let you live it down, ever. 

"Oh, great, it’s my crew. Yeah, I'm here too. Don't make a big thing out of it." Mermista said in her usual bored tone. It was weird to see her so dressed up. When she'd been their captain on the voyage to Salineas, she'd just worn a simple pants and a billowy shirt, her aqua hair loose save for a bandanna. Now there was an elaborate braid twisted down her back and delicate sea blue earrings dangling on either side of her face. Not that the beautiful gold threaded sari wasn’t working for her. But Glimmer kept any appreciation of Mermista’s curves to a quick glance so Adora couldn’t give her crap about it. 

Adora snorted. "Soooo, you're Sea Hawk's plus one? Didn’t you say you’d rather set your own boat on fire than go out with him again?"

Mermista groaned. "I am JUST his ride."

Sea Hawk leaned over conspiratorially and winked. "She is my plus one!" 

Mermista flushed and looked anywhere but at them. “Whatever. I’m only here for the kelp bar!” 

“Mmhmm.” Adora was really enjoying making Mermista squirm. Entrapta reached a purple tendril for her recorder and Glimmer handed it over. The tech princess made a quick audio note as Sea Hawk bust into song, and Mermista looked like she wanted to die. Moments like this, you could understand how his merfolk ancestors could send sailors to a water grave. Glimmer would happily crash her ship on the rocks right now rather than listen to his singing a moment more. She took the opportunity to refill her plate, grabbing extras of the best stuff for Bow to try, if he ever actually joined them. 

“So, you came with Bow?” Entrapta turned back to her, focusing the lens of her goggles on the gem on her chest. “I thought you two were friends.” 

"Why would you think we're not?" Glimmer glanced over to where Adora was still needling Mermista and noticed that Sea Hawk was also looking down at the gem on her chest. Or maybe he was just looking at her boobs. It was hard to tell with Sea Hawk. Whichever it was, when he noticed her watching, he quickly glanced away. 

"There he is! Bow!" Entrapta said, and Glimmer turned to find Bow right next to her, Mr. Handsome still hovering at his elbow. 

"Hi Bow!" Glimmer said, maybe a little too enthusiastically. But he gave her a big grin, so maybe it hadn't been too bad. Everyone was looking at them, especially Mr. Handsome, and it was making her feel super awkward. 

"Hi, everyone!" Bow waved to their friends. Then he turned to Glimmer and gripped her arm a little too tightly to be normal. "Hey, do you want to dance?"

"Uh, sure?" 

“Great!” Bow slipped his hand into hers and led her towards the dance floor. She started to follow until Adora called out and reached a hand out for the plate of food she'd totally forgot she was holding. She handed it over, knowing there was a zero percent chance there would still be any food left on it when she got it back.

There weren’t many people on the dance floor yet, and Bow pulled them into a small stretch of open space. It was a simple dance, one they’d all three practiced together back at Bright Moon, easy enough to do without too much thinking. She slid her hand under his cape, resting it on the back of his suit jacket. He went to do the same, but the back of her dress was open and they both startled when his hand touched bare skin.

“Sorry!” He said at the same time as she said, “It’s OK!” They both laughed and Glimmer knew she was blushing. Which was silly because it was just Bow and he’d definitely touched her back before, but everything was so weird and charged tonight. 

"Thank you for coming out here with me," Bow exhaled, relieved. He slid his hand over to her waist instead. Her dress covered there, but somehow the unfamiliar warmth of him in that spot wasn’t any less distracting than the other. "I could not get rid of that guy."

"Anytime." Glimmer couldn't help but glance over to where Mr. Handsome was glaring at them. "Who is he?"

Bow made a face. "Nobody important. I haven't seen him in ages, anyway. He's a jerk." He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "And a terrible kisser." 

"Wait a minute! Is that the guy with the teeth thing?" Oh, she remembered this story now! Bow nodded, pulling a face. She laughed and Bow grinned at her. So much of the tension she’d been holding since they’d gotten separated loosened into simple warmth now that she was here with her best friend again. "OK, so what? We're trying to make him jealous? Like, watch out, buddy, Bow's already got a buff bad-ass date and she WILL kick your ass if you try anything with those shark teeth.”

“Uh, yeah. I guess. Something like that.” 

“I can do that." She yanked him nearer, closing the bit of space between them, and Bow made a small noise of surprise. She moved her hand to his neck, which warmed under her touch. He crooked an eyebrow at her, perplexed. “Now you pretend you're telling me some hilarious inside joke.”

He leaned down and whispered into her ear. “Uh… I have absolutely no idea what to say.”

“Oh, you!” She smacked his chest playfully and threw back her head, laughing as if he'd said something hilarious. Which actually made them both bust up laughing for real, giggling like they did when they were kids stealing cake from the kitchens. Gods, everything was so much easier when it was just her and Bow. 

He must have been thinking the same thing because his eyes twinkled at her, warm and fond. “I’m so glad you’re here with me tonight.”

“Yeah. Well.” It was too much, whatever was in that look he was giving her, and she broke eye contract, tracing the cording on his suit front. He was just saying the same thing that she’d been thinking, that it was fun to hang out with your best friend. So why did everything feel so confusing right now?

Bow cleared his throat, his voice soft against her ear. “So how’d we do?” 

Under the pretense of laying against Bow's chest, she scanned the room until she found Mr. Handsome glaring daggers at them from the edge of the ballroom. Bow moved his hand to her neck, his fingers brushing the bottom edge of her hair. It was only part of the ruse, but she flushed, the contact sending a warmth through her body. 

Mr. Handsome seemed to take the hint, storming away. But not before giving her a look like she was something stuck on the bottom of his polished shoe. It hurt a lot more than she wanted it to admit it did.

“He’s gone.” She tried to sound cheerful. “What can I say? He knew he just couldn't compete with all this!”

She felt the rumble of Bow's laugh through his chest. He whispered in her ear again, his fingers sliding against the back of her neck. "He really can't."

She smiled against his jacket. He was just being nice. A pal. But it still felt good. 


	5. Princess Prom: As friends?

She was so beautiful. Not that Glimmer doesn’t always look nice, or that she looked any nicer all dressed up like this than she did normally but this whole beautiful thing… it felt new. Or maybe Bow was only noticing now because everyone on the dance floor was dressed to impress, and yet she was the only one he couldn’t stop looking at. Which was weird because she was just Glimmer and he’d seen her basically every day of his life since he was six years old. 

She and Adora’s arms were linked behind them, trying to promenade with the other couples, but Adora did the turn too early and Bow nearly spit out his punch watching his best friends try to untangle themselves. When they finally caught up with the rest of the dancers, Adora threw Glimmer into the spin too quickly and had to jerk her back before she crashed into Netossa. And there was absolutely nothing you could call graceful about the giggling disaster that was the two of them trying to muddle through the complicated steps, but he was mesmerized by watching the way Glimmer’s dress clung to her curves as she moved across the floor. When they were dancing together, her hip had felt so soft and warm under his hand and the way she’d pressed so close against him that—

Whoa. Where had that come from? What the heck, brain? That’s Glimmer. GLIMMER. Your best friend? He’d been chilly enough a minute ago that he’d considered teleporting home to get his cummerbund, but now… He cleared his throat and tried to focus back on the story Sea Hawk was telling him, hoping his old friend couldn’t tell how flustered he was. 

“…and, of course, plenty of other fish in the sea, as they say—and I would be uniquely qualified to know—but I still feel bad for the guy! It is hard enough being taken seriously as an Etherian Prince without having your dearest dump you in front of half the planet.” Sea Hawk was leaning with his back against the buffet table, smoothing his mustache with his thumb and index finger and watching the rest of their friends on the dance floor. Well, he seemed to be mostly watching Mermista who’d insisted she did not dance for the first hour until she realized dancing with Adora was an option. Now she was blushing like mad and trying very hard not to look like she was having fun as Perfuma dipped her and then passed her back to Adora to lift into another twirl. 

“So Sweet Bee really ended things?” Bow wasn’t particularly invested in it either way, but he knew Sea Hawk and Sweet Bee were friendly. He watched as Glimmer tried to lift Mermista like Adora had just done and sent both of them crashing to the floor in a laughing heap. Bow shoveled another hors d'oeuvre into his mouth. This was the first chance he’d gotten all night to eat, but he wanted to be back out there. He wouldn’t have any problem lifting Glimmer. 

“Did she ever! They’re still cleaning up honey in the lobby! Poor Peekablue, after that scene, I wouldn’t be surprised if he went into hiding for the next three years!” Sea Hawk flicked his finger and punch jumped into his cup, refilling it so he could take a sip without ever taking his eyes off the dance floor. “Still. Gift of far-sight. You’d think he would have seen it coming!” 

Bow laughed and Sea Hawk gave him a look out of the corner of his eye, the edge of his mouth turned up in a grin. The prince of Salineas was looking good tonight. At least now he could acknowledge that with no annoying butterflies. He’d nursed a hopeless, unrequited crush on Sea Hawk for years but, the longer they’d known each other, the more he realized that while the prince might be nice to look at, he wasn’t really boyfriend material. At least not for him. 

“So, Mermista’s your just ride, huh?” Bow got rid of his plate and refilled his cup the normal way, washing down the last of his rushed dinner. The traditional music had changed to something more modern and Perfuma was trying to teach the others some new dance that was all hips. Just… all hips, bodies swaying, the light creating rainbows that caressed the purple material of Glimmer’s dress, sliding down—

Damn it! He rubbed his face. WHAT was with him tonight?

“My dearest Captain and I… We play our little games. What can I say? I like the ADVENTURE of it! I was hoping she would agree to make things a bit more official this evening—” He tapped his gold ear cuff. “—but I didn’t have quite the success you did there.” Mermista had already gotten the hang of the steps and was making it her own, the blue of her dress moving like liquid as she swayed. She looked their way and smirked at Sea Hawk. He raised his glass to her and then poured it out into the open air, a purple liquid heart hovering in front of him. She rolled her eyes at him but then crooked a finger, beckoning him to join her. “Hmmm. If you will excuse me.” 

Sea Hawk caught the juice back in the cup, placed it on the table behind him in one movement and then stalked towards his plus one. Bow had to hand it to him. The guy was pretty smooth. Though it’s probably easier when you’re actually got a useful power. Lot harder to impress somebody when all you can do is sparkle at them. 

But what had Sea Hawk meant about making it official? There wasn’t much time to consider it before Adora twisted around, nearly dropping Perfuma. The flower princess was still trying to get her footing when Adora was gone, tearing across the dance floor and disappearing into the crowd like she was chasing something. It took Glimmer a moment to notice their friend was gone, and then she took off after her. 

That didn’t seem good. Bow drained the rest of his punch and set off in the direction his friends had gone. It was impossible to track anyone in this crowd, especially not someone as short as Glimmer. He could find them faster if he teleported ahead, but he only had about six solo jumps left in him if he wanted to leave enough to get the three of them home and he wanted to save his magic just in case. Especially now that Adora had run off looking like she’d just seen a ghost. 

Luckily, Glimmer proved easy enough to find. She was standing off to the side of the ballroom, nodding along to whatever Entrapta was animatedly going on about. He excused his way through the press of dancers, waving off friends and acquaintances that tried to waylay him. By the time he made it across the room to where they were, Entrapta had scurried up one of the large ice columns like a purple spider and Glimmer had started off toward the main entrance, looking troubled and touching the gemstone on her chest. 

“Glimmer!”

She spun around, visibly relieved when she caught sight of him coming towards her. “Bow! Have you seen Adora?” 

“Not since she left the dance floor.”

Glimmer shook her head. “She just took off without a word. And then Entrapta was telling me something happened with Frosta. Some big etiquette breach with another guest bad enough she almost threw Adora out.”

“About what?”

“I have no idea. You know how Entrapta is. She was more interesting in telling me about her…” She hesitated, her hand going to the gemstone again before she seemed to catch herself and put it back by her side. “…social observations.” 

“It’s probably nothing. Maybe Adora shoved another guest on her way to grab an interesting-looking hors d'oeuvres. Or maybe she interrupted someone else’s greeting, trying to talk Frosta into joining the rebellion again. You saw how well that went the first time.”

“Yeah. I guess that makes sense.” Glimmer scrunched her brows, scanning the room. “I just wish I knew where she went. I checked the bathroom, the buffet—”

“Give her some space. She’s probably embarrassed about the whole thing and needs a minute alone.” Bow reached for Glimmer’s hand. No offense to Adora, but a little time alone didn’t sound so bad right now. “Come on. I want to dance with you again.” 

Glimmer grinned and let him tug her back towards the dancers. “Who are we making jealous this time?” 

“Everyone.” He could see the rest of their friends still dancing in the center of the room, but he wasn’t in the mood to share right now. He led them toward the edge where there were fewer couples. “Every single person in this room who doesn’t have a gorgeous little powder keg here with them tonight.”

“Are you… flirting with me? It never even occurred to me you even knew how to do that.” Glimmer laughed, her face lighting up. “Though you should probably have laid it on a little thicker. If I didn’t know better, I might not have realized you were joking.” 

Bow opened his mouth and closed it again. Was he joking? He suddenly wasn’t so sure. They’d reached an empty spot near the balcony doors and he turned to start dancing, but Glimmer hesitated. 

“Actually. About that…” Glimmer hugged an arm against herself and wouldn’t meet his eyes. “While Adora’s not here, can we… can you and I talk about something for a second?”

“Uh, yeah. Of course. Anything.”

She looked around them and then gestured towards the outside doors, pulling him along after her. The stillness of the balcony was in stark contrast to the ballroom. The doors closed behind them, muffling the sounds of the ball, the music only a soft suggestion. The balcony itself was all ice, glass clear. Now that the sun had set, the only colors were the subtle blues and whites of the snowy landscape beyond the castle. It was an impressive sight and he should probably look at it since who knew when he’d next get the chance to visit the Kingdom of Snows but for some reason he couldn’t seem to look at anything but the girl he’d brought with him. 

“Everything OK?” He asked, as Glimmer scanned the balcony. There were a few others out here, a couple admiring the ice sculptures, a small group of friends posing for pictures by the railing, a young man in a blue coat sobbing in the far corner he had a bad feeling was probably Peekablue but none of them were close enough to be in earshot.

“Yeah. It’s fine, I just… wanted to talk. But I know how you royals are about gossip and I didn’t—” She shivered and hugged her arms to herself. “Shit, it is FREEZING out here.”

“Here.” Bow unhooked his cape and draped it over her bare shoulders. She started to protest, but he shook his head. “I’m fine, I promise. Maybe it’s a magic thing.” 

“Mmm. It’s still warm.” Glimmer hugged it around her. The cape was so long on her it almost reached her ankles, cocooning her in pale blue sparkles. “And it smells like you.”

Why did her saying that make him so irrationally happy? He wasn’t lying about being fine out here, but he was pretty sure it had nothing to do with magic and everything to do with her. And she looked ridiculous wrapped up in his cape like that, but there was something about the fact that it was _his cape_ and she was wearing it… 

“I want to dance with you,” he blurted without thinking. It was an idiotic thing to say, but suddenly he couldn’t stand that he wasn’t touching her. And, if they were dancing, he couldn’t just touch her, he could hold her close, and it wasn’t weird. When you were dancing, it was totally allowed. A loophole. 

Glimmer scrunched her brows at him, her little perplexed face even more adorable than her normal face, and he was consumed with an overwhelming desire to cup her face in his hands and what was WITH him tonight? It was like someone had cracked open a window to let in a breeze, but the entire wall had fallen down instead and outside was in and there was no way to put it all right again. And the longer he stood here and looked into those perfect brown eyes, the more he wasn’t sure he wanted it back the other way. 

“We can go back in in a minute. I just wanted to ask you something. Remember?” Glimmer was looking at him like she thought he’d lost his mind, which, honestly, he might have. He laughed, not even knowing why, and Glimmer looked slightly concerned. 

“OK. Fine. We compromise.” He couldn’t stand not touching her anymore, so he wrapped his arms around her back, hugging her towards him. Her hands were still bundled into the cape but he swayed them slightly to the music so it still counted as dancing. “Now what did you want to ask me?” 

Glimmer still looked slightly bewildered, but she exhaled, her eyes focusing somewhere on his chest. “When I was in the bathroom before, Perfuma cornered me by the sinks to apologize. Saying she never would have asked you if she knew about ‘us.’ And the way she said it, it was like… I don’t know. And then Entrapta, she said people were talking about it… or talking about us, I guess like… I don’t know, as a couple? And it’s not a big deal, I explained we were just friends but, the thing is, everyone is being really weird about me wearing your gemstone.”

Why would anyone be weird about—Oh! Oh, gods, he was an absolute idiot. Suddenly all the strange comments he’d gotten tonight made a lot more sense. 

Glimmer looked up at him, her eyes big and kind of sad. “And things with us have been… well, not bad, obviously, it’s been great but… different? Argh! I don’t know! It’s confusing, and I just wanted to clarify if… I mean, obviously, you and I aren’t… so it’s only a misunderstanding but there were a few times tonight when I felt… when it seemed like maybe…” She growled in frustration and buried her face in his chest like she was hiding there. When she spoke again, the fabric muffled her voice. “When you asked me to come with you, it was as a friend, right?” 

“As a friend. Yes.” Bow stopped swaying, not sure what he should do. He felt like he was teetering between something that could be amazing or an absolute disaster. “And the gemstone it… I’m sorry. I really am. I made everything so awkward for you tonight. I just didn’t think about how it would look. I mean, I knew it would look good on you, but I didn’t think how it would look to… other people.” 

Like he’d given her his personal token to wear to the biggest royal event of the decade. Like they were engaged to be married. Now that the rumor mill had a hold of that it didn’t matter what clarifications or explanations they gave, half the planet would think they were betrothed. 

Though that wasn’t bothering him nearly as much as it probably should be. 

“OK, yeah. That’s… that’s what I thought.” She nodded against his jacket. Someone else came outside, but neither of them bothered to look up. The sounds of the ball came and went again as the door open and closed. Bow watched the tiny pins in Glimmer’s hair sparkle as they caught the moonlight and tried to figure out the fluttering mess of emotions in his gut. Finally, Glimmer exhaled and lifted her head to look at him again. “That was all I needed to ask. We can go back inside now.”

She lifted herself off his chest and started for the doors. 

“Wait.” His arms were cold where she’d just been and he lunged forward, grabbing her arm before she’d gotten more than a step away. He pulled her back towards him, taking her hands from under the cape, needing to touch her and not caring about whether it counted as dancing. She bit her lower lip and he looked into that familiar face and everything came into perfect focus. He exhaled, absolutely terrified, but certain he couldn’t wait another moment to say this. 

“When I asked you, it was a friends. But…” He reached up and ran his fingers through the bottom edge of her hair. She leaned into his touch, her cheek soft and cool against his palm. “Is it alright if maybe I’ve… changed my mind?” 

Her eyes widened and for a moment he was afraid he’d completely messed everything up. But then she smiled at him, soft and shy, an expression he couldn’t remember ever seeing on her face before. “Uh, yeah. It’s alright.” 

Elation bubbled up inside him and he leaned down, feeling the warmth of her breath against his face. She was stretching up towards him, her eyes closed, and he was just about to close the distance between them when there was a sudden sharp stab in his back. 

Suddenly everything went fuzzy and he must have cried out because Glimmer was calling his name. He was falling, unable to hold himself up. Then Glimmer screamed, a terrible sound of pain, and he tried to fight the leaden feeling. He succeeded only in opening his eyes for a moment, just enough to see Glimmer hit the ground next to him, her eyes rolled back in her head. He tried to reach for her but the venom was too much and his grip on her loosened, his hand falling uselessly to his side.

The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was the Horde’s scorpion woman looming over them. 


	6. No Prince Left Behind: A Knight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glimmer contemplates how to get out of her cell in the Horde prison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you that are coming here from the Paletines link, this is a swap where Glimmer is the non-magic archer and tech master and Bow is the magic sparkly prince. The two of them were just kidnapped by Catra, Scorpia et al at Princess Prom at the end of the last chapter.

Fuck! Fucking godsdamn shitass motherfucking Horde! 

Glimmer kicked at the force field again but it didn't do anything more than it did the last dozen times she'd tried it. She grabbed at the only thing in her cell, the small hard bench, and tried to rip it out of the wall, but it was welded on. She screamed in frustration and kicked the bench too, though that did even less than kicking the force field and now her foot hurt. 

These FUCKING dress shoes! Why the hell didn’t she wear her boots? 

_FUCK_ her head hurt.

Something wet slid down her face and she touched it, her fingers coming up red. Great. Just fucking great. She wiped her hand on what was left of her dress. 

Another fucking mistake. She'd have had that scrawny blond kid if her shoes hadn't gotten caught up in the long skirt. This is why _soldiers_ didn't wear fucking _dresses_. She grabbed the edge of the material and yanked, the rich material giving easily, ripping the dress all the way around until the whole thing wasn't much longer than a pair of shorts. She threw the ragged wad of material against the wall, just to get it out of her sight. 

What if that was the last time she ever saw him? And she'd wasted their last conversation talking about a fucking necklace. She reached up to touch the gemstone and realized it was gone, lost in the fight. 

No! No, she was absolutely not going to fall apart, not going to let these assholes see her cry. No tears, no fear. She pressed every emotion down into simple, uncomplicated rage. 

She paced the tiny space. This whole place smelled like piss and motor oil. Her body ached, her muscles still recovering from the double dose of venom and the fight but she wouldn't let herself sit. Not when those piss-guzzling ass-monkeys had her best friend. 

They better not hurt Bow. They better not touch one FUCKING hair on his head or she would end them, make every last one of them pay. She punched the force field again, pain stinging through her hand but at least it kept her sharp. 

She tried to cross her arms but they were too tender, the ugly marks along them already turning sickly yellow. Every deep breath stung where the lizard guy kneed her in the gut and her head was still ringing from that punch she took from the bitch with the braids. At least she'd given back just as good. 

Maybe better since Glimmer still had all her teeth. 

She never should have let them take him. Never should have let them be separated. She wouldn’t have, if those shitstains hadn’t cheated. If they hadn’t called in their pet scorpion to sting her, knock unconscious because she would never have given up otherwise. She’d still be out there, drunk on fury, biting and punching and kicking until nothing that could hit back could move anymore. 

She’d been the one. Scorpia the others called her. She'd been on the balcony with them and Glimmer should have noticed, should have been paying better attention, should have recognized her from Salineas but, no, she was too busy acting like some godsdamn boneheaded girl in a storybook gossiping and playing dress up! She should have been protecting her friends, should have never let her guard down, should have known the Horde would ruin the ball like they ruin every FUCKING thing they touch. 

You’re a fucking soldier, asshole! Or did you forget that? 

Bow, screaming, his body contorted in pain, surrounded by red lightning. She dug the heels of her hands into her eyes, trying to block out the memory. It hurt like it had been her being ripped apart by dark magic. The desperate way he’d called her name, that horrible sound of pain he’d made when Shadow Weaver— 

Shadow Weaver. She was going to fucking kill her too, right after she wiped that shitty little smirk off Catra's face. Standing there with She-Ra's sword swung over her back, gloating in the ship, laughing as they hurt him, as they hurt the person she cared about most in the entire world. This whole thing was Catra’s fault and she had to pay.

I don’t care what you were to Adora. Give me one of my arrows and I’ll carve that fucking smile right off your face. And then we’ll see who’s laughing. 

It took a moment to get her breathing back under control. She clenched and unclenched her fists at her side, the cool air of the metal prison hitting her bare skin. Blood oozed down the side of her face again and she wiped it with her forearm. 

Think, Glimmer. They have the sword. She-Ra’s not coming. You’re on your own here. 

Well, then fine. She'd rescue them herself! She'd find Bow and take him home. That image was calming, somehow. They didn't need anyone else anyway. It had always been the two of them before and they’d managed just fine!

Besides, that what she really was, anyway. Not some sparkly poofed-up princess. A fucking _knight_. 

So how was she going to rescue her prince? 

She made her way back over to the force field, slower this time. Her brain was buzzing, wanting something to HIT but this wasn't the time for that. She needed the other part of her brain, the quiet part that could take something apart and put it back together again. She scanned the beams of light, focusing on one until she reached the pinpoint where it came out of the wall. There were zillions of them, lasers doubling over and over on each other until they formed a solid surface, _literally fucking impossible to get through!_

No. Deep breaths. Stay calm. You can do this. She tried to pretend she was some real technology master like Entrapta and not some hobby tinkerer who made trick arrows.

Thing was, she wouldn't need to shut off all the beams, just some. Disrupt the pattern enough that she could get through. Well, that’s just fucking great! If only she’d thought to bring a dozen tiny mirrors and a decent length of wire she could... 

Glimmer paused. She reached up and pulled one of the hairpins out of her hair. With her thumb, she snapped off the tiny crystal and watched how it sparkled in her palm in what little light there was in here. She closed her hand into a fist, protecting the tiny stone, an idea forming. 

Hang on, Bow. I'm going to get us out of here. 


	7. No Prince Left Behind: Take It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The whole time I was writing this I felt like I was crafting some horrific whump fic just to torture the characters but, no, this is just exactly what happened to my girl Glimmer in a cartoon for literal seven year olds. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

Heavy head. Couldn’t… Venom but there was… something… 

Bow tried to move but his body wouldn't obey. Red flashed behind his eyelids, the pressure in his head crushing, his thoughts blurry. Everything buzzed, an angry insistent drone that just kept getting louder, cutting through the fog until it was screaming in his head, forcing him back to consciousness. 

They'd hurt her… Might still be hurting her… They’d been separated because he hadn't been able to… Tried to reach her but then… 

The memory hurt like it was real. Lighting stabbing through his body, carrying the oily stench of dark magic. It took him a moment to realize he was screaming now, not just in the memory, the pain impossible. A thousand needles stabbing into his body, his eyes, his lungs, slicing him apart from the inside out. Instinct told him to use his magic to teleport somewhere safe, but he couldn’t find his powers in the mess of pain and confusion.

The Ball. The scorpion woman from the Horde. Catra. Shadow Weaver. Glimmer.

_Glimmer!_

He forced his eyes open, willing himself to stay conscious, the pain unbearable. All he could see was electricity, angry and red, and beyond that some kind of dark room. They had him on his knees, his arms bound by some force he didn’t understand. He tried to pull them free but the burning agony in his muscles only intensified.

There was someone there. He tried to turn but couldn’t do more than lift his head and even that was like lifting a block of lead. His eyes finally focused on the hovering figure, macabre tendrils of hair writhing around a mask of pure malice. 

Shadow Weaver. The air around her reeked with that same sour smell of dark magic from Mystacor. It was impossible to think that this horrible woman had raised someone as wonderful as Adora.

He hated that he had to look up at her like he was bowing to this monster. “Where… is Gl—”

Shadow Weaver flexed her fingers and the pain doubled. It was excruciating and all he could do is hold his breath and bear down as the electricity arched around him. When she finally released her hand, he let his head hang forward, panting. Sweat dripped down into his eyes, the salt stinging but he couldn’t wipe it away. Even now that she’d stopped, the pain was exhausting, his entire body under constant attack. 

"Welcome to the Fright Zone, your highness." Shadow Weaver sounded amused like this was all a game and she was winning. Bow was not a man who hated easily but he’d already been halfway there after learning what she’d done to Adora. Now he loathed her with an intensity that pushed out everything else. “I should warn you. Any attempt to teleport through these restraints will only cause you pain. It seems my Black Garnet and your powers don't mix. Besides, your mother will be here soon.”

His mother? Fear twisted in his gut but he pushed it down. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be. Shadow Weaver lies. Adora had told them it’s what she does. 

“Stop it.” He managed, through gritted teeth. “This just one of your mind games.”

“But what I said about Queen Angella is true. She's coming to surrender herself in exchange for your safety.” 

No! No, she couldn’t… but, of course, his mother would if she knew he was in danger. It was exactly what she would do. But he couldn’t lose his mother, not to the Horde, not like this. The world spun and he closed his eyes, trying to control it before he lost his balance entirely. 

Shadow Weaver’s voice was a purr, a mockery of actual sympathy. “Oh, it's such a shame, the toll this rebellion has taken on your family. First, you lose your father—” 

“You don’t get to talk about my father!” He threw his head up to face her. The pain punished him for the motion and he grimaced, biting his lip to stop himself from crying out. His fury stoked his magic and he felt it, at last, buried under the pain, just out of reach. 

“Don’t I?” Shadow Weaver laughed then, terrible and mirthless. “After all, I knew him longer than you did.” 

Fury roared in his ears. His hands shook within his bonds, making the electricity bite harder but he didn’t care. He reached for his magic but before he could do anything with it, there was the horrible sensation of being ripped apart, every cell of his body on fire. It was tearing him to bits and he wasn’t going to survive it, it was going to end like this unless he… if he could just… 

It took all his concentration and fighting against all his instincts but he surrendered his powers, falling back into the sharp fingers of Shadow Weavers magic. Everything went fuzzy, as he gasped for desperate breaths. It was too much. His muscles ached, the buzzing in his head a soundless scream. He fell forward with nothing left to hold himself upright, the binds wrenching his arms at the shoulder, and a hollow hopeless feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. 

“Oh, tsk-tsk. Careful now. It would be a shame if we had no prince to exchange for the Queen.” 

Helplessness, like a physical weight, pulling him downward. He couldn't take it. His vision blurred. The last thing he saw before the pain overtook him and he blacked out again was a single heavy tear dot the grime of the floor beneath him. 

—

It might have been hours or days that he hung there in agony. He’d tried to use his magic again, but each time it seemed to come closer to destroying him. He wanted to fight it, wanted to break free but the pain was so immense he could barely stay awake for more than a few minutes at a time. Every time he clawed his way back to consciousness, it was worse, like evil electricity was knitting itself into his very cells. 

There was a sound, a sharp intake of breath, different enough from the hum of his bonds that he noticed even in his half-alive state. 

“Bow?”

He knew that voice. It ignited something in him, a tiny fire in the hollow hopeless pit in his middle. He wanted to lift his head and see but he couldn’t remember how to move. It was like there was no body anymore, no muscle or motion, only unceasing unbearable pain. 

Footsteps, coming closer. “Bow? Can you hear me?”

Glimmer. He’d hallucinated her before, echos and visions he’d entertained because they helped distract him from the pain for a moment. The ghost of hope conjured up by part of the brain that hadn’t accepted that it was hopeless. 

”Holy shit. What did they do to you? I’m going to fucking kill that bitch Shadow Weaver for this.”

The version of Glimmer in his head usually didn’t swear nearly that much. Bow jerked his head upright, forcing his eyes open, paying for it dearly with a fresh wave of pain. He cried out and Glimmer reached for him, her eyes wide. 

“No! Don’t touch me!” Whatever this magic was, it was ripping him apart, he didn’t want to find out what it would do to her. She pulled her hand back and he focused on her properly for the first time. 

Her dress was torn and stained with what looked like blood. Her hair stood, wild, part of it scorched off. Bruises and scrapes covered her arms while the skin around her eyes was turning a sickly yellow. And she was missing a shoe. 

She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. 

Tears pricked in the corners of his eyes, pure relief that she was OK, that she wasn’t somewhere being tortured or dead like he’d feared. He so desperately wanted to touch her, hold her close, and never ever let her go again. A sound halfway between a laugh and a sob bubbled up. “You’re OK.” 

“Shh. Save your strength. I’m getting you out of here.” Glimmer was already appraising his bonds, following the cables with her eyes. She was so smart. Just completely amazing. “One of these has to be the power source. If I can disable the connection—” 

Her sentence ended on a horrible strangled sound and Bow could only watch helplessly as tendrils of black smoke twisted around her body. Her hands flew to her neck, her fingers fighting the constricting darkness twisting around her neck. The dark magic enveloped her and lifted her off the ground, her feet kicking desperately at the open air.

“No! Stop it!” He shouted, nearly pulling his arms out of their sockets trying to get free but all it did was send fire shooting through his muscles. Hours of pain had left him weak and even that small effort left him breathless and dizzy. 

“Don’t… hurt… her!” His voice was barely a ragged whisper. “Not her, please!”

Shadow Weaver ignored him, her hand extended like it was actually wrapped around Glimmer’s neck and not her magic. She closed her grip slightly and Glimmer’s eyes grew wide, her breath coming in shallow gasps. Bow’s body tensed and he tried again to free himself but the fire moved to his lungs, needles jabbing through his insides. 

“So this is the little rebel who caused so much trouble down in the prison. I must confess, I am not impressed. No magic ability, no powers. Small and soft. Nobody important. Were it not for the utter incompetence of our cadets, you would never have made it this far.” Shadow Weaver floated closer, the dark cloud around Glimmer constricting. His best friend grunted and gasped, trying to get free. “Useless. If Catra had not insisted Adora cared for you, I would have had them dispose of you already.” 

“No!” He wasn’t going to let the witch hurt her, not when he’d just gotten her back. “Please, just let her go!” 

“And why would I do that, your highness?” Shadow Weaver sounded amused. She flicked her other hand and everything went red, the lightning coursing through his body. When the agony finally stopped, he gasped for breath, his vision doubled. 

“Because…” What did he have to offer Shadow Weaver? It was impossible to think like this, through the pain and terror and complete exhaustion but he had to try. He couldn’t think of any other way to save her, not when he was trapped like this. But there was something… “I’ll... I'll let you take my powers. You’ve got a runestone but you can’t… you can’t really use it like a real princess, right? But I can.”

“Bow, don’t…” Glimmer croaked and he fought the heavy feeling in his head to meet her eyes. She didn’t want him to do it but he couldn’t just let her die. Any price was worth it if for her. 

He had Shadow Weaver’s attention now. She cocked her head, considering. “An intriguing proposition. It would be a simple matter to wipe your memory, turn you to our cause. As long as your body is alive, I can use your connection to the Moonstone for my own purposes. With the power of the full potential of the moonstone at my disposal as well as the garnet, we could crush the rebellion easily.”

“No! Bow, you ca—” Glimmer choked on the last word as Shadow Weaver tightened her grip. 

“You can take it. My power, Bright Moon… my life if you want.” 

“Yes. I think I will take it,” Shadow Weaver said and he let out a single relieved sob. Glimmer was kicking wildly, trying to shout but she couldn’t get enough breath. Her eyes were frantic and wide, begging him not to do this but he didn’t have a choice. He couldn't let her die. 

“You agreed to my offer. Now let her go!”

“I agreed to nothing, you foolish boy. We are at war. Only a fool expects mercy from their enemies. The girl dies and you stay for as long as I have need of you.” Shadow Weaver closed her hand. Glimmer’s face went red, her mouth opening and closing. Her kicking got more desperate and he realized she was suffocating, wouldn’t have more than a few moments if she didn’t get some air. 

No. No, she couldn’t die. Not like this, not in front of him, not when there was nothing he could do to help her. 

Fear and rage stoked what little of his power was left and he reached for it. As soon as he touched it, the pain started again, worse than before, like Shadow Weaver’s power was ripping him to pieces. But this time he didn’t let go but reached for more, more magic than he should have left, using the pain to stoke the few sparks left into something large enough for him to do something with. The witch had said it would kill him, using his magic, and in that moment he felt certain she was telling the truth. If he kept this up there was be nothing left of him because her power would rip him to shreds. But if he couldn’t save Glimmer then there wasn’t any point in be careful with his own life. 

Come on! It was like trying to light a fire with wet sticks, the magic was there but he couldn’t get it to ignite under Shadow Weaver’s dark bonds. Glimmer was turning purple, her kicks slowing. He would only get one shot at this and they were running out of time. 

The dark magic wanted to destroy, it wanted to tear him apart and he finally let it. With a scream he stopped trying to hold himself together and surrendered to it, letting it tear him apart. He felt his magic catch, the familiar glow of power coursing through him at last and as the dark magic blasted him into bits he used it, using the power of the moonstone to recollect himself, completing the teleport. 

Bow appeared in the air just above Shadow Weaver, using gravity to his advantage, and put every last bit of magic left in him into his fist. The old sorceress only had a moment to turn and widen her eyes in surprise before he slammed his fist into her face, sending them both sprawling to the ground.

He hit the ground hard, Glimmer crashing down next to him. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are always hugely appreciated no matter how long after posting it is!
> 
> Visit my Tumblr for asks, fic updates and misc thoughts. [https://tippenfunkaport.tumblr.com](https://tippenfunkaport.tumblr.com/)


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